Movies with Impact

By Terri Reddout

Which movies had an impact on our culture or society?

By impact, I mean, did the movie change how we look at the world? Did it change the way we speak? Did it change the way we see how others view the world?

So, which movies had an impact on our culture and society? It depends on who you ask.

Ask a film buff and they might say Citizen Kane or Casablanca.

Ask a war veteran and you might get answers as diverse as Bridge over the River Kwai, Born on the 4th of July, Coming Home, Full Metal Jacket, Apocalypse Now or Finding Private Ryan.

Ask a woman and you might get Norma Rae,Erin Brockovichor Thelma & Louise.

Ask a kid (or a grown-up kid) and they might say anything with Marvel Comics in the title.

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…

In my day, a movie with impact had to be Star Wars. The story, the characters, the computer generated images took us to a new place and time.

When Ronald Reagan proposed the Strategic Defensive Initiative, a network of missiles to protect the U.S. from nuclear attack from Russia, the White House dubbed it “Star Wars.” (BTW- In the wake of talks with North Korea, it’s weird to think Russia as our greatest threat of nuclear attack.)

Star Wars also added catch phrases to our conversations, like “May the Force be with you,” Yoda’s “Do. Or do not. There is no try,” or when Obi Wan Kenobi uses his Jedi Mind Trick to convince the Storm Troopers “These are not the droids you are looking for.”

My favorite has to be when Princess Leia professes her love to Han Solo before evil forces freeze him in carbonite. Han simply replies, “I know.”

Duh, daa. Duh, daa. Duh, daa, duh, daa, duh, daa… SHARK!

Of course, JAWS had a huge impact on culture in my youth.

I remember an 80-year-old woman sitting next to me in a darkened theater yelling “Bite it. Bite it!” when the shark had the SCUBA tank stuck in his teeth.

The local radio station created a group they called JAWS: Join Against Wicked Sharks. They encouraged listeners to call in with shark sightings from rainy highways, irrigation ditches or even from the water fountain at the local mall.

The movie is said to the inspiration for the Saturday Night Live “Land shark” skits.

AIDS information goes main stream

But when I think of movies with a lot of social impact, my first thought is the 1993 movie Philadelphia.

It’s the story of an upscale attorney who gets fired for having AIDS and then uses the Federal Disabilities Act to sue the legal firm for dismissing him. The film stars Tom Hanks as the upscale attorney with AIDS and Denzel Washington as the cut-rate store-front attorney who represents Hanks’ character.

The movie gave the public some insight into a disease we just didn’t know a lot about. It also shattered some people’s homophobic tendencies. In this day of more accepting attitudes about homosexuality and our increased knowledge about AIDS, it might be difficult to understand the fear people had in the mid-80s. To give you an idea here’s a little AIDS history.

I remember a young Tom Brokaw reporting stories night after night about a mysterious disease primarily striking homosexual men. At that time AIDS didn’t have a name yet.

When AIDS did get a name, no one knew exactly how you got it. There were a lot of myths, including you could get AIDS from a toilet seat. At the time, an LA Times Poll found that over 50 percent thought AIDS patients should be quarantined. Another 15 percent supported the idea that all AIDS patients be given an identifying tattoo. (Flashback to concentration camp Jews being given identifying tattoos.)

Philadelphiahelped to change those mindsets. At first, Denzel Washington’s character isn’t sure if he should shake hands or even be in the same room as Tom Hank’s character.

Over the course of the movie, we learn more about AIDS, even though there wasn’t much to know at the time. Washington’s character learns more about Hank’s lifestyle and recognizes the similarities between Hank’s family and his own.

This movie trailer for Philadelphia may give you a better insight into the attitudes about AIDS at the time.

Philadelphia was the first big money motion picture to deal directly with AIDS. It shined light on a still mysterious disease. It started conversations; conversations that made AIDS less of a stigma and more of a disease that had already killed thousands.

I would argue Denzel Washington should have received an Oscar nomination for this film. He didn’t. Tom Hanks did. And when he accepted his Oscar, Hanks continued the AIDS education.

My partial list of runner-up movies with impact

(No, there are no Schwarzenegger movies.)

There’s lot of other movies with impact. “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?” deals with interracial relationships way back in 1967.

Do movies have an impact on our culture. Hell yeah! How many of you (or older family members) have watched Titanic more than once? How many holidays are spent gathered around the tube watching Elf,Christmas Vacation or, based on a tradition I established with my son, Django Unchained? Thanks to the Godfather series we know that gangsters have a heart.

The Assignment:

The following three TED talks address how movies change how we view the world.

Jeff Skoll : My journey into movies that matter shares how his production company “Participant Productions” makes a difference to humanity. Skoll’s production company produced the Oscar winning films An Inconvenient Truth, Syriana and, Good Night, and Good Luck. (15:30)

Beeban Kidron: The Shared Wonder of Film shares how a film program in the U.K. helped change children’s attitudes, got them more involved in political issues and increased their critical thinking skills. (13:12)

If, for some reason, the links don’t work, type the speaker’s name and the name of the speech into Google and look for a TED Talk with that title.

I can’t say I agree with everything they say, but all three offer interesting perspectives. Pick two talks to watch. Think. Now share your opinions about how movies impact you and our culture. Make sure to incorporate references to the two videos you viewed.